Many skinny guys, mostly hard-gainers, are looking for an answer to a question how to build muscle mass. It is hard for many guys to add muscle mass on their skinny body, mostly because of genetics or probably because they don't follow right diet and training plans.
Okay, so you've been in a gym couple of times and you saw many big guys and you are starting to lose hope for gaining muscle mass. Or, you maybe never stepped into a gym and you want to learn some tips for gaining muscle mass for skinny guys like you before you start lifting. If you are one of these guys then continue to read these tips for gaining muscle mass for skinny guys.
1. DIET
The most important thing is that you eat a right amount of healthy foods. If you are a hard-gainer you will have to eat a lot, eat every three hours. Your diet plan should consist of three big meals and at least three snacks. Those snacks won't small as you might think, it is just named snacks because it should be a fast meal that is smaller than those three big meals.
To gain lean muscle mass you have to be in caloric surplus, which means that you need to consume more calories than you spend. And it has to be like that every day. Warning, that doesn't mean that you have to eat junk foods and a lot of sugars, you are looking to add more muscle mass, not body fat.
TIP: Eat a lot of protein foods to build muscle, but consume twice more carbs for more muscle gains. Many guys make mistake by focusing only on proteins. Proteins are the most important nutrient for building muscle, but carbs and fats are very important too. Your meals need to contain all three macronutrients, proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.
Check out what foods you should eat to gain muscle mass:
Also, at least one of your meals should be your post-workout protein shake. Give homemade mass gainers a try, they are healthy and high in protein, carbs and fats calories. They will make your muscle mass building easier and faster:
2. TRAINING
Together with your diet plan, you will also need a good training routine to follow to build lean muscle mass. If you never lifted a weight, I advise you to start working out at home for some time before you start going to gym. Bodyweight exercises are great for beginners to gain some muscle gains and strength before starting to lift heavy weights in the gym.
Try one of the Bodyweight Workout Programs:
I also recommend to all beginners to first find a workout to increase their strength and follow that routine for at least one month and after that start making gains with hypertrophy (muscle growth) workout routines. One of the most popular workout programs among bodybuilders is Reg Park's 5x5 Workout that is great for beginning lifters to make some muscle mass and strength gains.
Now, if you followed these two training tips you are ready to aim for muscle hypertrophy. Ideal rep range for muscle growth is 8 - 12, and the number of sets doesn't need to be higher than 4. I recommend Full-Body Workout Routines to gain more muscle mass than with Split Routines. Exercises used in full-body workouts are compound movements that are best for building muscle mass and with full-body workouts, you will target all muscle groups which results in more stimulation for muscle growth.
Focus more on compound exercises and don't waste your time with isolation and machine exercises. You won't go so far with them. Best muscle-building exercises are heavy compound movements like Squats and Bench Press.
3. Supplementation
The supplements are at the 3rd place after diet and training. You can't build muscle mass by consuming supplements every day but without consuming a right amount of nutrients. But, supplements can be a great addition to your diet plan and support your muscle growth. Don't waste your money on every supplement that is advertised. Most of them are unnecessary and won't help you to build muscle mass.
Other factors
Some of other factors that are important for building muscle mass are quality rest and testosterone production. They are also very related, without quality rest you can't produce enough testosterone levels for building muscle mass. Rest is very important, you are gaining muscles while they recover. So, don't train every day. Training every day is only good for steroid users, they can build muscles all day long. Give yourself a quality rest after a workout and at least one day rest between training days. It is recommended to sleep at least 8 hours every night to let your muscles recover and grow.
Also, boosting your testosterone levels will help your muscles to grow, so check out these tips for naturally boosting testosterone levels:
If you try following this guide I promise you that you will see your muscle gains for at least two months. Be very persistent, and don't lose motivation. You want to make a change that will positively affect your life so don't ever give up and there will come a reward after a hard work. Good luck!
